A £3bn programme of upgrades to the trans-Pennine rail route is set to start in spring next year, says Transport Minister Chris Grayling.
Speaking in West Yorkshire on Friday, Mr Grayling told an audience of West Yorkshire business leaders and politicians: “I want to realise passenger benefits from the £3bn we have ring-fenced for the Pennine route as fast as possible.
“Network Rail has already begun detailed designs and provided us with options for the trans-Pennine route upgrade to meet the objectives we’ve set out – for journey times, capacity and reliability.
“That – in turn – has given us an opportunity to undertake the work in phases starting as soon as spring next year.
“This is not just about meeting rising demand for train travel, it’s about transforming journeys too.”
Addressing delegates at the Transport for the Northern Powerhouse Conference in Leeds, Mr Grayling said he was also committed to working with local authorities along the route on ways – including Kirklees – to “maximise the benefits” of the investment, including building new stations to increase access to the railway and finding opportunities for housing development.
The pledge was welcomed by West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA), which draws representatives from Kirklees. Calderdale, Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield councils.
Mr Grayling said he was committed to improving journeys on the trans-Pennine route – with state-of-the-art trains, longer carriages and more frequent services – and stressed that the £3bn earmarked to upgrade the key route between Manchester, Leeds and York represented a third of his department’s total budget for rail improvements between 2019 and 2024.
Clr Susan Hinchcliffe, who chairs WYCA, said: “We welcome and share the Transport Secretary’s desire to see that improvements are made swiftly to the trans-Pennine route to benefit passengers as soon as possible.
“We look forward to seeing more detail of the proposals for this upgrade and hope they deliver on our ambitions for all rail services and customers using this transport link, which is vitally important to the Leeds City Region economy.”
Clr Hinchcliffe said: “Ensuring the benefits of upgrading the trans-Pennine route are maximised is a critical step towards the longer term plans for strengthening existing transport corridors all across the north and building new ones as outlined in Transport for the North’s plan.”
The plan presents a 30-year vision for investment on road, rail, sea and air connections to help drive the region’s long-term economic growth and identifies the need for Increase efficiency, reliability and resilience in the transport system.
Mr Grayling attended the conference shortly after an announcement by German engineering giant Siemens that it plans to create 700 jobs with a new state-of-the-art train factory in Goole, East Yorkshire.
Mr Grayling said the decision was a “sign of confidence in the United Kingdom.”
Siemens said the move “has the potential to have a tremendous impact on the Yorkshire economy and the North of England as a whole.”
